Category Archives: Front Porch Forum

Neighborhood as Trade Association

Posted on Monday, December 4, 2006 by • No comments yet

Trade associations form when a group of businesses in the same field feel a need to work together to (1) get a better shake from government and/or (2) get group discounts from the vendors that serve them. Professional societies serve the same purpose for individuals. Last I recall, the United States has an incredible number of these organizations. That’s how you get things done… find a group with common interests to yours, then work together to lobby government and twist the arms of your common business partners (yes, they also provide training, issue credentials, market the industry, etc.).

I’ve been in and around such entities for much of my career in Washington, DC (trade associations central) and more recently in Vermont (where I ran a 30-employee association of utilities).

Now in launching Front Porch Forum, I’ll be darned if I don’t find myself on familiar ground. This past week, a neighborhood forum in Williston bustled with talk of neighbors banding together to muscle a bulk discount from a trash hauler. Previously, a forum in Shelburne discussed a group discount on home heating oil. Neighbors in Burlington have connected through their forum to split cords of firewood. Another group of neighbors jointly purchased a power leaf mulcher. Plenty of potential to save a buck using your forum to organize a group of neighbors to get some leverage. I wonder what’ll be next?

Using neighborhood forums to political ends… that’s even more common. Burlington forums debate the Southern Connector highway project. Williston forums heat up over the proposed landfill. Our neighborhood’s phone service used to cut out during every hard rain… for years… decades. Our forum got folks mobilized and making calls (when the sun shined!). Now we have new poles and lines and great service. We have a similar story about our old nearly impassable sidewalks… replaced now with concrete the envy of every trike rider in town.

Need to mobilize your neighborhood? Try Front Porch Forum.

Posted on Sunday, December 3, 2006 by • No comments yet

Technorati Profile

Neighborhood Watch’s best Friend

Posted on Saturday, December 2, 2006 by • No comments yet

Longtime Front Porch Forum member Bob Wolf remarks that the forum in his area “acts as a neighborhood watch.” In the past week, I’ve seen messages across greater Burlington about two house buglaries, a car break-in, a missing bike, and a handful of graffiti and noise complaints. Previously, neighbors posted about a registered sexual predator who appeared to be violating the terms of his release, a child abduction (thankfully broken up before the perp. got away with the nine-year-old girl victim), and an armed home invasion.

The primary benefit appears to be neighbor helping neighbor, and everyone keeping an eye out for each other. However, Front Porch Forum also encourages and welcomes the participation of local law enforcement. The Burlington Police have been on board our flagship neighborhood forum for years. Lately South Burlington and Williston police have joined our forums in their communities.

In fact, it was a quote from Lt. Kathleen Stubbing that contributed to our decison to take our initial single neighborhood forum and launch Front Porch Forum to share the success with other areas:

“I think the forum is terrific. It is also very helpful when it comes to crime prevention. I wish all the neighborhoods in Burlington had this communication venue.” [Now they do!]

So, when a neighbor wakes up to a broken car window, she may think to tell her neighbors through her Front Porch Forum. Nearby residents are duly alerted and may be able to provide an eye-witness account. And, the police may decide to contact the victim directly and/or send a note to the neighborhood via the forum.

Other episodes are more direct. In the first week of a new neighborhood forum, a member posted a question: “Does anyone know who it is that drives through the neighborhood squealing his tires and locking up his brakes every weeknight at exactly 11:35?” The police called and asked if he minded if they camped out in front of his house at 11:30 that very night. Well… by 11:40 PM, problem solved.

“How could I possibly resist joining my neighborhood’s forum?”

Posted on Friday, December 1, 2006 by • No comments yet

Closing its third full month of operations in metro-Burlington, Front Porch Forum counts about 2,500 households as members. That’s 5% of the county; 12% in Burlington. A couple neighborhoods have more than 80% of homes participating, about 15 are at 20-40%. Folks report joining because a friend or neighbor told them about FPF.

And member comments tilt strongly positive. We get lots of unsolicited notes like the following from today:

How could I possibly resist joining my neighborhood’s forum? I know a good idea when I see one! I am looking forward to learning more about what’s happening around here with people, places, and things. -Elise Eaton, Burlington

And…

I must say, this forum has been absolutely wonderful for me and my family!! Canning jars, baby clothes, great community interaction!! Congrats to you! -Heather Armata, Westford

Thanks to our members for joining and participating, and especially for spreading the word to others. More neighbors taking part makes each forum more useful for everyone.

Need a Crowd at your Event?

Posted on Wednesday, November 29, 2006 by • No comments yet

Anyone who organizes public gatherings knows how hard it can be to attract a good showing of local folks (unless major controversy erupts). Some thinkers reason that people just don’t care these days or they’re too busy.

I’m beginning to wonder if it’s more a case of the message being drowned out by the din of competing media… too much information swarming around us. Posting an announcement on the city’s website and in the local newspaper does not mean people will notice and act.

So it’s compelling that reports are piling up of people using Front Porch Forum to gather crowds for events. No single example impresses, but taken together…

1. Newly (re)elected State Representatives for South Burlington held a meeting this week to solicit input from their consituents. One incumbent reported “the majority of folks who got there did so through Front Porch Forum notification as contrasted to the notice in the [local daily newspaper].”

2. Burlington’s several Neighborhood Planning Assemblies meet monthly and provide an important community link to city government and are involved in many valuable projects. Recently, a city staffer who has attended countless such meetings reported the largest turnout ever. While the agenda contained a couple of hot issues, the sense was that a fraction of the crowd would have shown up if not for the new set of neighborhood forums covering that part of town.

3. My neighborhood is blessed with a great park. A concerned neighbor reported tonight that the Parks and Rec department may significantly change a portion of the park, and he posted the date and time for the public input meeting (first I’ve heard of it). I’m guessing this will be the next example of a big turnout generated through a Front Porch Forum posting.

Lots of other examples of neighbors pulling neighbors into local government goings on. In a way, this is using the internet to increase citizen participation in public policy and to hold officials accountable. That’s similar to the Sunlight Foundation‘s mission. I met with it’s National Director, Zephyr Teachout, today (still digesting the spread of ideas she laid out!). The Sunlight folks focus on citizens using the internet to press for transparency and accountability in the U.S. Congress. Amen!

Ultimately though, Front Porch Forum is about helping neighbors connect and foster community. Other benefits, like engaging your city councilor about property taxes, are an important bonus.

Tragedy Brings out Good, Better and Ugly

Posted on Tuesday, November 28, 2006 by • 1 comment

Watching neighbors connect through Front Porch Forum is often both fascinating and moving. This post from today, e.g., adds to other evidence we’ve witnessed of people wanting and waiting for a chance to lend a helping hand to those around them.

My husband died from metastatic prostate cancer in October. I asked for help finding someone to snowblow my driveway [through her FPF neighborhood forum] and think I have found someone. Then I went away for a week and when I returned my leaves were raked and removed and items moved from around the house to the driveway. I don’t know who did this, but I have to think it was someone in the neighborhood and I wanted to say thank you.

This message comes from a suburban-style neighborhood where about a quarter of the 200 households signed up with Front Porch Forum in the first three months of operation. To further thank her neighbors, the writer goes on to share a warning:

You should also know that in July 2006 we had a house invasion during the daytime (2:30 pm, man with a ski-mask) and my husband’s pain medication was stolen ([he] was lying in bed at the time). While I was away in November, there was another break in. His remaining medications were taken too. There is no more medication in the house and it is now very much more secure, but be aware that this sort of thing happens even in our own “safe” neighborhood.

Many thanks to the kind-hearted and energetic people who helped me out.

The anwser to the request for snow-removal help for the coming winter is great. The mysterious leaf-rakers are even better. But it’s the willingness of the writer to share her loss, ask for help, and offer a constructive warning to her neighbors out of what must have been an awful experience that motivates us to make Front Porch Forum happen for more people and neighborhoods.

Forums Nourish Neighborliness

Posted on Sunday, November 26, 2006 by • No comments yet

Anecdotes are piling up of increased neighborliness in areas with vibrant Front Porch Forums. People seem more willing to see those living around them as neighbors worth getting to know vs. strangers who happen to live a few doors away once an FPF neighborhood forum breaks the ice. Some such stories are collected on our testimonials and media pages.

It’s wonderful to watch low-level online exchanges build up over time and feed positive face-to-face interaction. FPF postings come from nearby neighbors and each is automatically signed with the sender’s full name, street and email address. After dozens of messages about babysitters, car break-ins, furniture for sale, free baby strollers, roofer recommendations, public policy opinions and more, people begin to get to know their actual neighbors’ virtual personalities, interests, opinions, etc. When they do meet face-to-face, the foundation has been laid for a neighborly exchange.

Kevin Harris reports on three new publications that “contribute significantly to the arguments around neighbourliness, informality, and informal social control.” From the introduction of Respect in the Neighbourhood:

The challenge is to replenish society’s depleted stock of skills in engaging and recognising the legitimate interests of others… to hone our readiness to show consideration to others, whether we know them or not. It’s not that we don’t do this: it’s just that we tend to avoid doing it with those with whom we have little in common. It’s as if – conditioned to the taciturnity of the supermarket checkout rather than the inevitable greetings of the corner shop – we have abandoned the practice of conducting trivial interactions, because they don’t matter to us. But they do matter, and we need somehow to rediscover the vernacular of mundane encounters.

Success and Scale for Local Online Services

Posted on Monday, November 20, 2006 by • No comments yet

Recently, Peter Krasilovsky noted in The Local Onliner that Backfence.com is finding success with it’s “hyper-local” online newspapers (content supplied by local volunteers). Backfence attracted a $3M investment over the last year and now is operating in 13 communities. Further…

Usage-wise, more than 10 percent of local residents in the site’s communities are logging on, and one percent are posting. “We don’t have as many posts as we’d like to have,” but the site has made real inroads in its communities, she says.

It’s a bit apples-to-oranges, but Front Porch Forum had 10% of Burlington, VT households on board within two months of launching… and for a tiny fraction of the investment. Our most successful neighborhoods have 80% of the households registered.

Also, on the issue of scale, The Local Onliner reports about Backfence…

One [lesson learned] is that a hyper-local site had better be scoped along hyper-local lines. “Arlington hasn’t done as well as Bethesda because it is a bigger area,” notes DeFife. “Arlington is actually (four) communities – Clarendon, Ballston, and North and South Arlington. It shows us what (is likely to) happen when we go into counties,” and that it important to keep the hyper-local focus.

If that’s “hyper-local” then I’m not sure how to describe Front Porch Forum’s target scale… micro-local?

Regardless, I’m fascinated to see the variety of approaches. Different strategies will work in different places.

Looking for Good Links

Posted on Sunday, November 19, 2006 by • 3 comments

I just set up the links in the margins here.  It’s interesting to see other online efforts attempting to support community within neighborhoods.  Each has it’s own approach.  Of course, I’m biased and favor the strategy used by Front Porch Forum.  I’d love to participate on a panel with representatives of:

Who else?

Please share links to other services focused on local online community-building.  Also, I’m interested in social capital, social cohesion, civic engagement, etc.  Any good sites to recommend?

Neighborhood Scale

Posted on Thursday, November 16, 2006 by • 1 comment

Kevin Harris found an interesting item:

Here’s another take on the scale of neighbourhood, developed for work on children’s play:

‘Doorstep’ – 60m straight line distance from home (100m walking)
‘Neighbourhood’ – 260m straight line distance from home (400m walking)
‘Local’ – 600m straight line distance from home (1km walking)

This comes from a presentation given by Issy Cole-Hamilton of Play England, at a recent Neighbourhoods Green seminar.

This deliniation is similar to what we’ve found in our work with Front Porch Forum:

1. Borrow a cup of sugar distance… homes within site. Maybe 20-30 households.
2. Your neighborhood… several blocks around you. Maybe 200-300 households.
3. Your side of town… an area, more than a neighborhood. Maybe 2,000-3,000 households.

Our service is aimed at the second level. We get folks who want us to make it work at the first or third levels… but that’s not what we’re designed for. Too small, and the forum doesn’t acheive a critical mass of users and the conversations dies out. Too large, and the sense of intimacy doesn’t occur.

About Blog

Ghost of Midnight is an online journal about fostering community within neighborhoods, with a special focus on Front Porch Forum (FPF). My wife, Valerie, and I founded FPF in 2006... read more

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